I am seeking my father's military records from his service in WWII. I understand that a fire destroyed many of the records, but I don't want to assume that his records have been destroyed - I'd like to confirm what there is, or isn't, in the way of his military records.

His name is John George Wozencraft, Jr. Date of enlistment is 7-27-1942 in Chicago, IL; began active service May 26, 1943 - April 9, 1946. Served in Signal Corp, as Cadet, as Radio Repairman and as Code Clerk. Was in 264th Infantry Regiment, 66th Infantry Division, Private First Class and served in Northern France. Departed for the European Theater 11-15-1944 arriving 11-26-1944. Arrived back in U.S. and discharged 4-3-1946 at Camp McCoy, WI. I have his Army serial but don't know if that's considered personal identifying information that shouldn't be posted here.

Thank you for any assistance about what records are, or are not, available from my father's WWII service.

Also, if there aren't any records remaining for his service, is it possible to track the activities of his unit to see where he may have been throughout his service?

If you have made a request to NPRC in St. Louis and have received a response in the past saying they didn't find anything. I would try again if it has been sometime ago since you filled a request for records.You can also try searching auxillary records and requesting final pay records and morning reports as additional information pertaining to your relative. I Also if he resident of Illinois I would reach out to the Illinois state veterans office. If you dont get anywhere with the state then try local County Veterans office of the city or town that he would have came home to after the war.

We searched the World War II Operations Reports, 1940-1948 in the Records of the Adjutant General’s Office (Record Group 407) and located histories for January 1944 to October 1945 and after action reports for November 1944 to July 1945 of the 264th Infantry Regiment. For access to and/or copies of these records, please contact the National Archives at College Park - Textual Reference (RDT2) via email at archives2reference@nara.gov.

We suggest that you request his Official Military Personnel File (OMPF). OMPFs and individual medical reports for enlisted men of the U.S. Army who were separated from the service after October 1912 and prior to 1955 are in the custody of NARA’s National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis. In many cases where personnel records were destroyed in the 1973 fire, proof of service can be provided from other records such as morning reports, payrolls, and military orders, and a certificate of military service will be issued. Please complete a GSA Standard Form 180 and mail it to NARA’s National Personnel Records Center, (Military Personnel Records), 1 Archives Drive, St. Louis, MO 63138-1002.

Selective Service records for individuals who served after World War I and born before 1960 are in the custody of the National Archives at St. Louis (RL-SL), P.O. Box 38757, St. Louis, MO 63138-0757. There are two types of records: the ledgers and the cards. The ledgers are in the public domain and not restricted by privacy. The cards are considered personal information and written permission for release, a death certificate, and/or an indication the information is requested for genealogical purposes should accompany the request for copies of the cards. Please complete Form NA-13172 to request a search of these records.